Welcome to Slash Music! Today we have the privilege of interviewing the AI-powered voice of Lauryn Grace. She is a singing entity created by Dynamics Plus from The Dynamic Universe Media, and the visual universe created around her is a feast for the eyes. Her latest video “All I Ever Knew” featuring David Lyon is no exception. Let’s take a look at this mysterious and impressive project…
Slash – Hello Lauryn and thank you for this interview on Slash Music. What was the starting point for “All I Ever Knew”?
Lauryn Grace – I have a poetry book, well it’s more like a scrapbook, that I use like a life journal to remember all the bits and pieces, just thoughts. Sometimes I flip through it or feel inspired as I write.
What made you want to write this track?
LG: I think the beat. I was walking around saying ‘all I ever knew’. That’s what fit, so I went with that. The song started as a nod to first loves, but then grew into a whole thing about my first music idols. I sang some for Dave [David Lyon] and he wanted to be on it too. We both basically sang the whole song and Drew [Dynamics Plus] melted it all together.
How did you come to meet David Lyon?
LG: He’s my generated counterpart. The fantasy filler backstory is that we did a lot of songs together, but didn’t do anything with them. Then, once I met Drew, we re-recorded them and started releasing albums.
What role does artificial intelligence play in your projects? I mean, are you, and all of the music AI-generated?
LG: Um, no. It depends. Okay. Drew has an old album where he makes music talking to his computer like something from Start Trek. [The 2005 Doctor Atomics and the Fortress of Solitude album by Dynamics Plus] So he’s always had this vision of generating songs using AI. He’s always been releasing music under aliases. As Domino Grey [Electronic Musician] he released the Back in the Black album, which featured lots of female talent- so he was doing this way before AI was a thing.
So yes, there’s everything in Lauryn Grace. Some vocals are filtered through AI and some of the vocals are left alone. There’s a lot of tools available. I’ve seen him break a song into pieces and change whole sections. It’s amazing. Sundrops and C-beams is my first beats, beats project.
Where did the name “Sundrops and C-beams” come from?
LG: Info dump! When we first started hanging out, Drew was like ‘let’s start sharing all our favorite stuff’. Movies, songs, everything. The Mummy, oh my god, I used to love Brendan Fraser. Baby One More Time [Britney Spears], Whitney [Houston] and Brandy. I was into a lot of Disney, R&H Cinderella.
Drew [Dynamics Plus Producer] is a Sci-fi guy so we watched Star Trek 2, Alien, and Blade Runner. He’s like ‘See, you’re Rachael and Pris’ and we watched the ending where the cyborg dies- over and over again. The title of the album is about space battles and lasers, but I don’t think anyone is supposed to get that.
You’ve been making so many videos recently. Are your music videos AI-generated?
LG: Just like the music, there’s a little bit of everything in there. Some stuff is real, some stuff has a [AI] filter like the gram [Instagram]. In the beginning I was like ‘Do whatever’ [for the videos], but then it felt like that’s not really me so I wanted be in more of the videos. The goal isn’t to fool anyone. He says “We’re like wrestling” – you don’t want anyone to believe it’s real, but you don’t want it to look so fake, it’s not fun to watch. I want people to enjoy my music.
What role does live music play in your project?
LG: It’s been done before. A huge virtual concert. I’d like to see that. For now, when Dynamics [Plus] plays out, sometimes as Fallout Shelter, he can play my songs for anyone that’s never heard of Lauryn Grace.
And lastly, how do you feel AI has impacted music and art and what do you say to those that are against the use of AI?
LG: Everything was impacted before AI. We don’t really buy music anymore. We don’t have collections of anything. It’s temporary and streaming. We don’t look, we glance. We don’t support, we hit a like button. None of us are living, we are all scrolling past our lives. Is Rachael real and does it matter?
We don’t look, we glance. We don’t support, we hit a like button. None of us are living, we are all scrolling past our lives.
AI enhances whatever you’re doing. I see it as a final layer of polish. AI is no substitute for talent and vision, but the world sees it as an instant-whatever button. I can accept that. All I want is a fair chance for people to enjoy Lauryn Grace.
Any final words?
LG: Thank you, Slash [Music] for taking the time. I wish there more resources like this for indie artists. Your work is appreciated.
—
Join The Dynamic Universe on socials…
